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Stunts
It's always worth repeating that stunts do not need to be essays. We're going for brief, interesting short descriptions here not necessarily oratorical acrobatics. 1die stunt: Must simply be an interesting description, usually by appealing to the senses and incorporating a minimal amount of novelty (it's not something you repeat every turn or every other turn). Grants 2 motes of essence. 2dice stunt: Must be a 1die stunt plus incorporate riffing off the scenery or ongoing actions. Grants 4 motes of essence or 1 willpower. 3dice stunt: A 2-die stunt which plays into or furthers a character's motivation. Given out at most once per scene per character. Grants 4 motes and 1 willpower OR 1 virtue channel. These are things so simple that I should almost never be saying anything other than "two dice" after every action. It's all just to make the game more interesting and entertaining. I have no intention or interest in approaching stunts with an antagonistic, "that's not good enough" attitude. I only have two requests: the first is that you try and the second is that you have your actions and stunts roughly planned ahead of time, espeically during combat. Use the time between your turns to think. Yeah, sometimes a player will do something to poo-poo all over what you wanted to do but, in my experience, that doesn't happen often so don't let that deflate you and cause you to disengage from the game. Here's a stunting cheat sheet which I stole from some thread at rpg.net The Character: Hair: Hair whips in the wind, moves and flows with your movements and attack (especially if long). It shadows your (gleaming) eyes. Gets messed up by battle. Gets slicked by sweat Eyes: Eyes flash and glint when angry, widen in shock, narrow or harden with determination, or sparkle when happy or mischevious. Enemies and attacks can be reflexted in the eyes of the warrior, as can other important events. Face: Mouths smirk, grin, bare teeth, snarl. Teeth flash when speaking angrily. Ears quiver, nostrils flare, cheeks redden and flush. Blood leaks from the mouth when hurt, bruises and cuts can be described. Sweat beads on forehead with effort. Body: Muscles bunch, tighten, and ripple. They are like steel, stone, or thick rope. Feet slip against the ground, make puffs of snow or snad. Veins throb and bulge. Hands tighten on pommels. Clothes: Cloaks whip and flow on the wind. Armor gleams in the sunlight (especially if Solar). Clothes get rent and torn. Boots thud against wooden floors and click against stone. Clothes rustle and whisper as you move quietly. Emotions: Characters are often emboldened by the memory or the the thought of that which they fight for. Apparitions haunt or cheer the defender, ambition fuels your strength. Humiliation burns through your body. Joy puts spring to your step. Laughter echoes and humiliates or brightens. Tears can be shed when emotions hit high points. Anger gives titanic strength and need (don't forget to roar) Anima: Animas impact your surroundings and are symbolic or your actions. Solar anima's bleach things when they get powerful, leaving pale foot prints, bleaching cloth and wood. DB animas damage things, put cracks in the ground, leaving frosted/ashen/wet footprints. When Animas really play up, they can push small extras aside, make areas rumble or rattle. Totemic images act with the character, roaring, fighting for/with him, attacking the OTHER totemic image, mocks your opponent, etc. Scenery: Background: Bars have stools, tables, laterns that can be used. Streets have stalls, wagons, rooftops. Gates/doors can be torn off hinges, walls can be shattered with the force of your hit, pillars can be toppled, curtains can be lit on flame or cut down onto your enemies. Tables can be broken by falling people, wagons over turned, stalls can be smashed into. Collateral damage, people! Environment: The sun gives a halo (especially to Solars). Wind whips cloacks and hair. Water splashes and ripple. Snow and sand crunches and flies up behind a runner. Trees sway and rustle. Shadows hide features and play tricks. Rain wets hair and clothes and makes things slick, and ghostly. Scenery tends to fall apart in big battles. Again, collateral damage. Extras: Extras are there to make you look good. Let them do so. They unconciously back away when you are angry, crowds murmur and smile at clever comments or attractive people. Extras can be thrown at other extras, or torn apart as examples to others. Desriptions of your events can come from some Extra's perspective. Time: Attacks can appear to be spead up, while one deadly attack will be shown in slow motion. Truly fast characters will make their surroundings seem to slow down while they move at normal speed (things like raindrops, falling sparks or leaves are great to show this). Jumps freeze for a moment at their apex, and time can stop for a moment as someone realizes they are dead. Close ups: A shot of your face, mouth, eyes, or your attack. Zooms can change backgrounds while your character is powerinf up or extremely emotional. The "screen" goes black during a powerful attack, and all we can see is the slash as a bright mark against the darkness. Alternate shots: Show the action from a different perspective, or don't show it at all, but only imply it. Birds suddenly flying away, glass falling and breaking, the earth shuddering. Reeds swaying in the wind, someone elses expression (as blood splatters on their face). The sounds of your action echoing.